This is art
by RecklessAbandon123
Summary: Klefaroline AU/AH. Caroline moves in Chicago and when she meets the handsome Klaus and the mysterious Stefan, she is thrown into a world of art, pleasure, feelings she never thought she was capable of having but also pain and heartbreak. Everyone is called to make a choice but what happens when the choice is already made for them? (Also contains Klefan, Klaroline and Stefaroline).
1. Chapter 1: The spark

A/N: This is an idea that is still fresh in my mind but I can tell I already like the story. Yes, I actually like the plot and not the fact that I'll be playing with my three favourite tvd characters' mind (oh who am I kidding? I love messing with them).

What I'm trying to say is that I'm writing this story not because of the smut that I will probably put in later chapters, but because of the plot. I have made a chapter plan and there will be about 20 chapters, but for now I'll only be publishing the first few I have already written and see what response I get.

There will be Klaroline, Klefan, Steroline and eventually Klefaroline, and it is Rated M for a reason, but I'll warn you on each chapter separately if there is a smutty scene. Just don't blame me if you are offended by anything because I'm warning you. I gladly accept constrative critism or suggestions on how to improve my writing and make this story better, but flames will not be tolerated and will be used to toast marshmellows.

Enjoy the first chapter, my lovelies. And sorry if I sound like a total bitch, I promise I'm not, but I had to say a few things.

Disclaimer: I do not own The Vampire Diaries and its characters.

Caroline Forbes was a small town girl but with dreams that reached way beyond Mystic Falls. Her parents were divorced. Her father had left them for another man when she was still little, a huge strike to her mother's confidence, while Liz Forbes was the town's sheriff, never seeming to find time for her only daughter.

However, Caroline didn't let any of that hold her back and prevent her from fulfilling her dreams. When she finished high school and after tearfully bidding farewell to the best friends she was so lucky to have, Caroline left Mystic Falls behind her and moved to New York where she studied fashion design and excelled in it. Yet, this didn't seem to be enough for her.

Elena and Matt encouraged her to keep pursuing the things that made her happy, so while they both studied for the future career they would follow, Caroline travelled the world. Sometimes when she looked back to the choices she had made, she would feel sad for leaving her mother and the town where she had grown up behind, but she didn't regret a single step of the journey.

That was her motto: live your life to the fullest and have no regrets.

At the age of 24, Caroline moved to Chicago and with the checks Bill Forbes had been sending over the years as if the lifeless pieces of paper with the numbers on them could replace his absence from his daughter's life, Caroline bought a house in which she settled in.

She didn't know why Chicago. There were many places where she had been and even more places she wanted to visit, but there was something special about Chicago with its bright city lights and vibrant night life that drew Caroline towards it.

It had been a month since she moved there when her phone rung one morning, too early for her liking, but that phone call was enough to make her fully awake and bouncing with excitement.

"Care, guess what? I'm coming to Chicago in two days!" Elena, her best friend since kindergarten chirped with enthusiasm.

A little too much enthusiasm, Caroline thought, but that was normal for Elena these days. It had been two weeks since her boyfriend of two years dumped her for another woman, and Elena was trying to be her extra enthusiastic self a little too hard like that would balance the hurt and betrayal she was feeling.

"Katherine invited me to stay with her for a while and you know what? I think I need a change and what better place for it than where my twin sister and my best friend are?" Elena continued.

They talked for a while longer and when she hung up, Caroline was smiling at the prospect of seeing her best friend soon.

XXXXX

"You know what? I think you're right. I need to stop thinking about Damon all the time and start living a little instead." Elena said, downing her second drink for the night while Caroline was still at the first.

A day after Elena's arrival to Chicago, she and Caroline went to the bar where Katherine was working to have some fun.

"That's what I've been trying to tell you! There are so many men out there and you are pretty and smart and interesting, so what are you waiting for?" Caroline told her friend just as Katherine was walking towards their table to check on them.

The twins were completely alike, except that while Elena's hair were straight, Katherine's were curly, and Elena was the most shy and kind of the two, whereas there was something in Katherine that spoke of mischief.

"Here you go, cupcake. Just take it easy with drinking." Katherine said as she handed them new drinks and Caroline smiled at her.

As Katherine left to attend to another customer, Elena nudged Caroline and told her "Look at those two by the bar. I think they're looking at us."

Caroline's head shot to the direction her friend was showing her, and she felt her heart beat a little faster in her chest. She might have been single ever since she and her high school love Tyler broke up, but that didn't mean she had stopped appreciating the male sex and couldn't spot a hottie when she saw one.

The two men sitting a few feet away from them couldn't be older than in their early twenties and from the way they leaned on the bar and whispered to each other with their eyes locked on her and Elena, it didn't take a genius to know that they were talking about them.

The older of the two stood up and started walking towards their table, the other following suit. When he was stood before them, he said "Hello, ladies."

Caroline noticed that his hair was a dark blond and his blue eyes reminded her of a stormy ocean. Her eyes landed on his plump red lips and she gulped a little at the thought of how handsome this young man talking to her was.

"I'm Klaus and this is my brother Kol." he said.

After a pause she wished didn't show in which she had to pry her gaze off his lips and look him in the eyes, Caroline said. "I'm Caroline", then indicating towards the other girl "And this is my friend Elena."

"I'm sorry to bother you, but my brother here finds your friend Elena really pretty and he just couldn't find the courage to talk to her." When Klaus spoke, he was looking directly into Caroline's eyes and she found it difficult to look away as well.

"Thanks, Nik." the other man, Kol, said sarcastically, but when he turned to Elena and asked her if she would have a drink with him, she giggled and looked at Caroline for her approval. 'Go', she mouthed and felt satisfied when Elena smiled at Kol and said that it would be great.

The two of them walked towards the bar and Caroline turned to look at Klaus, who had sat on the chair previously occupied by Elena, and she said "Looks like we are on our own."

Klaus smirked and Caroline's heart made a somersault at the sight of his dimples.

"I hope you don't mind that I'm here." Klaus said with the same smirk still on his face as if he knew the affect he had on Caroline.

"What would make you think that?" Caroline asked in the same tone, not willing to let Klaus know what he did to her.

"In that case, would you let me buy you a drink?"

Caroline agreed and Klaus signaled to Katherine. She gave Klaus an once-over and then smirked approvingly when she handed Caroline her drink.

"So, Caroline. How long have you been living in Chicago?" Klaus asked her.

"A month or so. Still haven't seen much of the things the city has to offer." she admitted, sipping her drink.

"Ah, you should. There are so many things to see and do and experience. You know, Chicago used to be a city of guilty pleasures. Everything was prohibited here in the twenties, and that was what made this city such a popular destination for anyone who wanted to have fun. Now the fun is free, so you should live everything to the fullest."

Caroline smiled at his words. It wasn't only his enticing voice, low enough for only her to hear, or even that British accent that was enough to drive any woman crazy, but also what he was saying. His words spoke to this part of Caroline that had always believed the same thing, and that made her feel a little tipsy with excitement.

"What about you? Have you always lived in Chicago?" she asked, because she didn't want this mysterious stranger to stop talking.

"My family is from New Orleans and that's where I spent my childhood years. I moved to Chicago to study art and then travelled the world for a year or so, but I have been back here for quite some time and some my siblings have followed me."

"An artist, huh?" she murmured to herself and blushed when Klaus smirked at her from across the table.

She turned her attention to the bar where Kol and Elena were talking animatedly and laughing, instinctively inching closer to each other.

"I think Kol and Elena have really hit it off. I can almost see sparks flying." Caroline said to distract Klaus from her blushing, but her cheeks flushed pink once again when he said in that velvety dark voice "I can see the sparks here as well."

He wasn't talking about Elena and Kol anymore, though. When Klaus said this, his piercing blue eyes were fixed at Caroline.


	2. Chapter 2: We meet again

Caroline went home that night with a handwritten sheet of paper with Klaus' number in her purse and a smile plastered on her face. She still couldn't believe that someone like Klaus had taken interest in her and she knew that it was highly unlikely she would ever hear from him again, but her spirits had been lifted by their meeting and she wouldn't sulk around and be pessimistic about it, nor would she hope for the impossible only to have her hopes crushed later.

She went on with her daily routine, looking for a job and spending time with Elena. She found no luck in the first department. It wasn't easy for a fashion designer to find a job, but Caroline wasn't about to give up searching anytime soon.

That was how Elena found her an afternoon a few days after her encounter at the bar with Klaus. She entered her friend's house holding two cups of coffee and announcing "Kol asked me out tonight."

"Oh my God, Elena. That's amazing!" Caroline said, clapping her hands in excitement. "Where is he taking you?"

"Well, here's the thing. I have two tickets for this art exhibition, but when I told Kol about it, he just laughed and said it would be better if we just went somewhere more romantic. His reaction is kind of weird if you think about it, but I'm not about to pass on the chance of dinner with candles and romantic music with Kol, so I was thinking..." Elena trailed off, turning big, imploring puppy-dog eyes at her friend.

Caroline immediately became suspicious. "What were you thinking, Elena?"

The brunette handed her her coffee and said "Maybe I could give you the tickets and you could go to the art exhibition in my place."

Caroline, who was sipping the latte her friend had brought her, widened her eyes and set her cup down on the kitchen table.

She made a wide gesture at the piles of papers she had spread on the table consisting of clothe designs, job applications and telephone numbers of various clothe firms and stores all around Chicago.

"I have work to do, Elena. I can't just abandon everything and go to that art exhibition of yours." Caroline tried to reason with Elena, but the brunette was almost as stubborn as she herself was.

"Where is the old Caroline we all know and love? The one who insisted we go out every single night and who always partied the hardest. Come on, just give it a shot."

In the end, Caroline was forced to agree. Elena helped her pick an outfit, but then she had to go back to the place she and Katherine shared to find her own clothes for her date with Kol.

"You have fun at your date, kiddo." Caroline said as she hugged Elena goodbye.

She hadn't seen her friend so excited about something ever since her breakup with the biggest manwhore on earth, and Caroline was happy for Elena. She just hoped that Kol didn't break her heart like Damon had.

When it was almost seven in the evening, Caroline wore the blue knee-length dress she and Elena had chosen. The colour complimented the colour of her eyes and her slim waist. She combined it with her favourite pumps and since the event was formal, she also pinned her hair high above her head and wore tear drop-shaped diamond earings and a matching necklace.

The art exhibition was held in a grand mansion that honestly took Caroline's breath away because since she was a little girl she always imagined herself living in a place like this. The paintings for the exhibition were set in the huge hall of the mansion. As Caroline followed the other visitors inside, she noticed that they all were dressed formally and she sent a quick thanking thought to Elena for remembering to tell her about the dress code. Caroline might not have a job or swim in money, but at the moment she blended in the crowd as if she belonged there.

All of the paintings were of the same artist who, from what Caroline managed to decipher from the various conversations around her, was a young man whose family owned the mansion and who signed his paintings with only the initials N.M.

With these information in mind, Caroline as her normal judgmental self couldn't help but think that this N.M. was just a brat with no real talent that just exploited his family's wealth searching for recognition- that is until she saw his paintings. They were beautiful, of course, but that wasn't the only reason why Caroline felt so spellbound by them.

It was the emotions every single painting gave her, from the ones of landscapes and scenes of nature to the depictions of people and even the more vague ones that could be interpreted in any way the one who looked at them wanted. It was as if the artist was feeling something different while he drew each painting, and Caroline could feel these emotions just as intently by just looking at the them.

"Do you like it?" a voice asked close to her ear and Caroline turned around abruptly, only to be robbed of breath by the sight of blue eyes glinting with mischief.

"Klaus." she aknowledged the man standing beside her and then asked in disbelief "What are you doing here?"

Her question made him chuckle. She noticed that he was wearing a suit like most of the other male visitors, but it looked less formal on him, probably because he wasn't wearing a tie and the collar of his shirt was unbuttoned. Nevertheless, his short dark blond hair curled in an endearing way, his eyes were an even deepest shade of blue from the one she remembered, and he looked stunning as always.

"I could ask you the exact same question, Caroline." Klaus said, amusement evident in his voice.

"I'm just appreciating art." Caroline said, but when he raised his eyebrows and looked at her through his lashes, she couldn't help laughing.

"Fine." she admitted "Elena had a date with your brother and she was trying to find someone to give the tickets to, so here I am. I am appreciating art, though, or at least I can appreciate these paintings."

It was Klaus' turn to laugh, and Caroline found herself thinking that she rather liked the sound of his laugh as she liked everything about him.

"I see." he said "And what do you think of, let's say this painting over there?"

He took hold of her elbow and led her to a painting depicting a snow-coated, bare landscape. Caroline pretended to be thoughtful for a while before she said "I believe it shows the vastness and the loneliness of the wilderness, but also this certain kind of beauty it has." she shrugged and let out a little laugh "Or maybe I'm just crazy."

"I don't think you are crazy." Klaus said, his voice somehow different than before, more sombre. He gazed into Caroline's eyes and said "I believe you're beautiful."

She held her breath as his words sunk in and was about to answear, but the wall of electricity between them was shuttered when a voice said "You're Klaus, the artist, aren't you? Congratulations. Both my husband and I really enjoyed your exhibition."

The woman who spoke came and stood between her and Klaus with a murmured "excuse me, dear" and she shook hands with Klaus. While she kept talking in too shrill a voice for Caroline's liking, Klaus seemed like he wanted to be anywhere but here.

When the woman finally walked away, Caroline turned to look at Klaus who looked like a kid caught stealing cookies from the jar before lunch.

"Seriously? So you made all these paintings?" That explained Kol's reaction when Elena told him about the exhibition.

"Niklaus Mikaelson. I plead guilty." Klaus said with a sly smirk and Caroline didn't know if the urge she had was to hit him or kiss him.

She settled for saying "So you just blend in the crowd and fish random people's opinion of your works?"

"So you just go to an art exhibition without bothering to learn the name of the artist?" he retorted.

Caroline laughed "Okay, you got me."

For a moment they just stayed like that, smiling stupidly at each other. She thought that if they were the main characters in a romantic comedy, that would be the time when they started kissing.

"Look, I've got to go." Klaus suddenly said, and Caroline felt her smile faltering as she muttered a little "Oh."

There she was, thinking about kisses while Klaus was obviously trying to find a way to get rid of her, a voice in her mind that knew of heartbreaks and false hopes scolded her.

"No, this came out the wrong way. Why don't you come back here tomorrow evening? There will be a small gathering, nothing special, but I would be really glad if you accepted my invitation."

Caroline was incredulous. Was he really inviting her to his mansion? A look at his expecting face told her that he was.

"I think that would be perfect." Caroline said with a smile.


	3. Chapter 3: The world of art

# This is art ch3 ff edition #  
A/N: I wasn't planning on updating so soon but then I thought that this chapter is needed for you to see where this story is going. In other words, Stefan is introduced in this chapter.

Enjoy, my lovelies.

Caroline glared at the clothes spread on her bed, her eyebrows furrowed. She had been trying to find the perfect outfit for Klaus' gathering; not too formal but not too casual either.

A quick glance at her bedside clock told her that she would be late if she didn't chose now. She sighed and settled for a cream white dress with a low neckline and a gold heart-shaped locket that nestled between her collarbones.

Caroline was nervous, there was no need to deny that. As she walked up the stairs to the mansion's front door, she couldn't help wondering why someone as charming and, judging from his house, rich as Klaus would be interested in a girl as plain as herself. Yes, he had called her beautiful, but no one else ever had.

Caroline always came second best. In high school, she had been insecure, her best friend Elena always being prettier and having more boys fighting for her attention, and even though she loved Elena, only when she left Mystic Falls and saw the world on her own did she manage to find her confident, bold self.

Still, Caroline wouldn't see herself for what she was, and doubts about Klaus' invitation rose to the surface and gnawed at her as she rung the bell with a slightly trembling hand.

It was Kol who answeared the door and he shot her a sly smile the moment he recognised her.

"I see my brother didn't let the chance to invite you here go to waste, darling." Kol said, making Caroline smile.

Her smile grew even brighter when Kol said as he led her past the big hall and away from the parts of the mansion she had seen yesterday at the exhibition "Don't tell him I told you, but I think Nik is head over heels for you."

"And so are you for my friend." Caroline said, and Kol winked at her but she could see there was a light blushing on his cheeks.

They took a turn and then Caroline saw a door stood ajar at the end of the short corridor and there were voices coming from it.

When she stepped inside what looked like a study converted to a half living room, Klaus, who was conversing with a beautiful blond girl and an equally handsome young man stood up and rushed towards her to kiss her hand.

"Caroline." Klaus greeted her with a smile gracing his lips.

She felt his eyes rake over her body, his expression showing he was content with what he saw.

"Klaus. Sorry if I'm late." Caroline smiled back, her nervousness immediately disappearing.

"No, you're just on time. Come on, I want you to meet someone."

Still holding her hand in his own strong, warm one, and seemingly oblivious to the surge of electricity that shot through her at his touch, Klaus led Caroline towards the rest of their party sitting on a couch.

Kol was sat on the only armchair, so she and Klaus sat on the couch across the couple.

"I want you to meet my sister Rebekah and her fianceé-to-be Stefan."

Caroline exchanged formalities with them both and they shook hands. One would think that Rebekah, a beauty queen with blue eyes and perfect blond hair, would be arrogant or condescending, but the girl smiled warmly at Caroline as if they already were family. She sat close to Stefan, her arm resting in the crook off his elbow, her eyes alone giving away how in love she was with this man.

Stefan, on the other hand, was polite but a little distant with his chiselled good looks and broodiness, but soon Caroline found that this was just his nature.

Rebekah had finished school two years ago, and Stefan was an aspiring musician and studied history but had taken a sabbatical leave a year ago to move here.

"But why Chicago?" Caroline asked with genuine interest, and Stefan gave her a small smile which made his green eyes look brighter and her think he should smile more.

"I love the history of this city, especially during the Prohibition era. So many forbidden things and so many daredevils doing them any way."

"You know what they say, mate. The forbidden fruit is the sweetest." Klaus intervened, but even though he spoke to Stefan his eyes were locked with Caroline's and burning with an intentity that scared and excited her at the same time.

After a few tales from the old days told by Klaus with the rest of their party interupting to fill in gaps, Caroline found out that both the Mikaelsons and Stefan Salvatore used to live in New Orleans before Klaus and his siblings moved to Chicago.

"Kol and I finished high school here in Chicago while Klaus studied art and sold some of his paintings and our eldest brother, Elijah, found a job as a lawyer's assistant and did his apprenticeship. We had this mansion passed down from our ancestors but no money when we came here. It was difficult at first, but we coped." Rebekah told Caroline.

She didn't ask about their parents. Caroline had learned from her own dysfunctional family how difficult it sometimes was to answer questions.

After that they moved on to lighter topics like art and music and travelling. Somewhere between Kol's stories from College, Stefan and Klaus' experience from their travels and Rebekah's lively personality and amusing arguements with her brothers, Caroline found herself completely relaxing and getting lost into this new world she just now saw spreading before her.

Caroline was so absorbed in the conversation that she didn't realise how late it was getting. When it was well past eleven, she stood up and said she should get going.

"It was so nice meeting all of you." Caroline said.

She hugged Rebekah and shook hands with Kol, who winked at her mischievously, and Stefan, who gave her a small smile.

"Let me help you find a cab." Klaus said as he walked her to the door.

The night was calm and quiet, disturbed only by a light breeze that stirred the branches if the trees around the mansion. For a while they basked in comfortable silence until Caroline turned to look at Klaus and told him.

"Thanks for the invitation. I had a really wonderful time."

"We can do this again whenever you want." he offered.

Her mouth formed the next word before her mind could tell her to stop. "Why?"

Klaus took her hand and Caroline froze with her back on him. He gently turned her around and made her look him in the eyes by cupping her face in his hands, her thumbs stroking her cheeks. "I fancy you, Caroline. Is that so hard to believe?"

Caroline held her breath, heat pooling in her stomach by their sheer proximity. They were so close that if she took a step forward and leaned towards his lips they would kiss. That was exactly what she started to do when the sound of tires indicated a car had stopped somewhere nearby.

She looked up and saw her cab had arrived, its lights momentary blinding her. She looked back at Klaus with disappointment and he laughed at her expression.

"Don't worry, love. There is always tomorrow, and the day after, and after that."

Caroline smiled as he opened the cab door for her.

"Is that a promise, Mr. Mikaelson?"

"I believe it is, Miss Forbes."

XXXXX

Rebekah stretched on the couch and leaned her head against Stefan's shoulders with a small sigh Klaus didn't miss.

"Rebekah, love, you seem tired. Why don't you go wait in the car? Stefan will be joing you in a minute."

The girl stood up and picked up her purse, saying. "I am too tired to argue with you on that, Nik."

She planted a kiss on Stefan's lips and with a quick "Don't take too long.", she sauntered out of the room.

Kol had left about an hour ago, and with Rebekah's departure, Klaus and Stefan were left alone. Klaus walked towards him, placing his hand on Stefan's shoulder and then running his fingers down the length of his arm in a lazy stroke, but Stefan took a step back.

"Won't you stay with me tonight after you drive Bekah home?" Klaus asked as he drew his hand back, trying to keep his hurt at Stefan's rejection from showing.

Stefan sighed, his expression softening, and he crossed the distance separating them. No matter how much Klaus tried, he could never hide his feelings from Stefan. He looked Klaus in the eyes and then connected their lips for a brief moment.

"Not tonight. Because I know that while you are with me, you'll be thinking of her."

Klaus felt a pang of guilt, because Stefan's words were true; because just like Stefan can see through him, so can Klaus, and he knew he was hurt.

He wanted to touch Stefan and apologise and make it all better, because the distance between them, not the physical but the emotional, was too much to take, but he just let him go, knowing they would be back to normal in the morning.

"Goodnight." Stefan said when he was at the door.

Klaus didn't answer. Couldn't answer. What he could do was draw. A picture of Stefan, saying how sorry he was. A picture of Caroline saying he wanted to see her again.  



	4. Revelations and new friendships

# This is art chapter 4 #  
The next morning there was a letter from Klaus in Caroline's mailbox, accompanied by a drawing of her. She smiled, her fingers grazing the dark ink with Klaus' pointed handwriting on the heavy piece of paper.

It was Sunday and Caroline intended to spend the whole day in bed, reading books and drinking hot chocolate and she wouldn't let anyone ruin these plans.

That is until a very upset sounding Elena called her on her cellphone.

"Elena? Are you alright? Wait, were you crying?"

"Care? Do you think you could come to my place?" Elena asked her, her voice quivering.

"I'll be right there. Just give me a few minutes."

After the phone call was over, Caroline allowed herself a minute to wonder what the hell had happened. Then, she sprung into action, stripping from her pyjamas and wearing skinny jeans and a cashmere sweater after moving around vigorously for a few minutes to get her bearings.

Twenty minutes later Caroline was at her friend's house, banging on the door. For as long as she remained in Chicago, Elena was staying in Katherine's place and since her twin was almost never at home, Caroline and Elena had the house to themselves every time they met there.

Today, however, there was somebody else in the house. The door opened and the first thing Caroline saw was Elena's tear-streaked face as she fell into her arms and started sobbing.

"Elena, what happened?"

When she didn't answear, Caroline wrapped an arm around her best friend's shoulders and, closing the door with her foot, she helped Elena find somewhere to sit so that Caroline would be able to calm her down.

They went to the living room, and Caroline was bewildered to see Stefan seated on an armchair. When he spotted her he was equally surprised, if not more, but he quickly rushed to help Caroline place Elena on the couch.

Caroline was growing more and more confused. "Stefan, what are you doing here?"

It was Elena who answeared between her sniffing and tears, but to Caroline's great relief she seemed to be in control of herself again "I was attacked and Stefan saved me."

"Attacked? By whom?" Caroline asked dumbly because she hadn't gotten over her initial surprise yet.

Elena took a deep calming breath and blurted out "My twin works as a prostitute. The man who attacked me mistaked me for Katherine. How could she not have told me? If it wasn't for Stefan passing nearby and hearing the shouts..."

She burtst into tears again.

"Oh, Elena." Caroline coed as she rushed to her friend's side and hugged her.

Then she turned to Stefan who seemed kind of lost in all the tears and girl hormones and mouthed 'thank you'.

That was when the sound of the door unlocking came to her ears. They all looked up to see Katherine entering the house and then looking suspiciously at them after she took in the scene before her.

Elena stood up and said with an admirable calmness "Stefan, Caroline, I am immensely grateful for your help, but now I think me and my sister need to talk alone."

Caroline took the cue and stood up. She made it for the door, walking past a rigid Kathetine with Stefan in tow.

Caroline lingered at the door "Elena, we'll talk later."

Stefan was waiting for the elevator and she hurried to him before he left. "Stefan, do you want to go for coffee or something so we can talk?" Caroline asked.

"I don't know, Caroline." He seemed reluctant, but she wasn't going to give up so soon.

"Oh, come on. Just for a while."

In the end he had to agree. They left the building together and walked towards a small coffee shop located a few blocks away from Elena and Katherine's apartment.

They sat in a two-person table and ordered their coffees, but after a few moments passed and Stefan made no attempt to crack a conversation, Caroline felt the need to fill the silence with her usual awkward babbling.

"What you did was really brave. I mean, not everyone would jump in to save a complete stranger like you did. Also you don't have to look so repulsed with being here with me. It's not like I'm holding you hostage or anything. I just wanted to thank you for saving my best friend and since we have a common friend I thought 'Why not go for coffee?' and then-"

Caroline stopped her rambling to glare at Stefan and demand "Why are you looking at me like I am a neurotic psycho on crack?"

Stefan, who had been trying to keep a straight face all through her incoherent speech, burst into laughter.

"God, Caroline. You never beat around the bush, do you?" Stefan asked, wiping a tear of laughter from his eye, but he was still smiling like Caroline hadn't seen him before.

That was enough to make the tension between them disappear. They talked animatedly about various meaningless things, ocassionally laughing with this or that. Caroline found out that Stefan, despite her initial impression of him, was fun and easy-going if you got to know him. Somewhere along their conversation, an invisible barrier Stefan seemed to have raised between them dropped, and they started talking about more serious topics.

Caroline learnt that Stefan's father owned a big company and waited one day for his son to stop his irresponsible ways and take the reigns of the company.

"For now he supports me financially, but I don't know for how long. I'm just not made to run a company and order people around like my old man does. I guess he'll figure it out eventually." Stefan said, shrugging as if to show he didn't care.

"Still, it must be hard to be an only child and have all of your father's expectations on your shoulders." Caroline said, thoughtful.

"How about your family? Here I am spilling my guts to you and I practically know nothing about you." Stefan said in an attempt to lighten the mood.

Caroline sighed. She would tell him, but only a part of the truth. "My dad left us when I was little but we sometimes still talk and my mother is and has been a workaholic ever since. She is the Sheriff back in my town."

She felt bad for disclosing the truth from Stefan, especially since she had decided that she liked him, but only her closest friends knew that her father had abandoned her mother for a man half of her years.

If Stefan understood she was keeping something to herself, he didn't say so. They talked for a while more, and when she looked at her watch, Caroline was surprised at how late it had got. She had planned to finish her job applications that afternoon and it was already evening.

"Stefan, I'm sorry but I have to go. It was nice talking to you." Caroline said, offering a smile.

He also stood up and escorted her outside.

"I guess I'll see you around since Klaus seems to be so fond of you." Stefan said, and even though she felt butterflies in her stomach by his comment about Klaus, Caroline couldn't help but think that there was something bitter in Stefan's tone even though she couldn't exactly point her finger at it.

Even then, Stefan's smile was sincere and heartwarming when they parted ways.

XXXXX

After Caroline left for her house, Stefan didn't head home or at Rebekah's place. He needed to think, and the nearby park would serve his purpose just fine. There, as he sat on a bench surrounded by cooing pigeons to which he had nothing to throw, Stefan let himself think about everything he had supressed since seeing Caroline out of the blue that day.

The only thoughts he had spared her still meeting her for the first time was thoughts of jealousy closely followed by a seemingly never-ending guilt. Klaus fancied Caroline, Stefan knew that already, but Klaus had many womens passing from his heart and bed before and Stefan had never felt such envy for any of them. There was something special about her, and Stefan didn't blame Klaus for falling for her, but that didn't mean it didn't hurt him all the same.

Yet, after spending some time with her, Stefan found that he liked Caroline and genuinely wanted to be her friend. And how could he not? With her lively presonality, bouncing curls and the spring in her steps she wasn't able to make anyone dislike her- not even Stefan, who had every reason to.

Yes, Stefan liked Caroline, but if he kept spending time with her, he would only end up loading her and his conscience with more lies, just like he had done and kept doing with Rebekah.

Stefan sighed. He loved Rebekah in the way someone loved a sister, and yet he was deceiving her by keeping up the boyfriend act and not letting her move on with her life while he was not interested. And now he was lying to Caroline as well, but what was the alternative, really? Go up to her and tell her he has been and still is together with Klaus for the last five years? He would never tell anyone this; they wouldn't understand.

It wasn't like Stefan hadn't tried to get away from Klaus, either- not only for himself but for Nik also. He had tried and it never worked, because Stefan had feelings for Klaus, the kind of feelings that never let two people be separated.

Stefan sighed, pinching the bridge of his nose between his thumb and forefinger. This situation was too messed up, and worst of all there was nothing he could do because Stefan loved Klaus and Klaus was well on the way of loving Caroline. 


	5. Why they call it falling

# This is art chapter 5 #  
Caroline was pacing up and down the pavement ignoring the curious looks she was getting. Klaus had said he would meet her outside the restaurant at seven sharply, but now it was five minutes past seven and even though it was just a small delay, Caroline couldn't keep her thoughts in check and her mind was already creating absurd scenarios.

After all, this was their first official date and she couldn't help thinking that Klaus had changed his mind in the last minute.

Caroline felt a weight being lifted off her chest when she spotted him making his way towards her through the crowd of pedestrians.

"Caroline, I'm so sorry for the delay." Klaus said when he reached her, but she wasn't going to let him get away with standing her up so easily.

His eyes were raking over her body- he had asked her to wear the blue dress she had worn in his exhibition- and she wrapped her coat around her with a devilish smile so that any bare parts of her body were covered.

"Oh, I will make sure you are sorry." she said.

Klaus smirked and took her hand, making Caroline's insides melt into liquid fire along with her anger that vanished all at once.

"That's what I'm counting on, love."

They entered the restaurant and Klaus held the door for her like a proper gentleman. He led her to a table at the back and even helped her sit in her chair in that way Caroline had only seen in movies. She found the fact that he was treating her like she was something fragile and priceless both funny and endearingly annoying at the same time.

A waitress came and handed them their menus. Caroline could tell that the girl was ogling at Klaus while she eyed Caroline with envy, but he seemed to be oblivious to it, or so he wanted her to think.

"What would you like to order, sir?" the waitress asked Klaus, and he told her that they would decide later without even sparing her a second glance.

"The waitress is quite pretty." Caroline said in a flippant tone.

Klaus, who was suddenly finding the dishes written on the menu very interesting, said with a smirk "I didn't notice her. What I did notice, however, is the way she was undressing me with her eyes. But I don't blame her. Every woman has the same reaction around me."

"Oh, wow. Way to be modest." Caroline said while she thought that that was exactly her reaction when she first met him.

She laughed.

"What do you want, sweetheart?" Klaus asked, gesturing at her untouched menu.

Caroline examined it for a few moments before she said "I think I'll take a well done steak with rice and vegetables and chocolate cake for dessert."

"Then I'll take the same." Klaus said.

They looked at each other and then smiles spread simultaneously across their faces. That only made them smile even brighter.

When they were done with their dinner, Caroline was feeling full and lightheartedly joyful. Klaus insisted he paid, and then they walked towards the parking lot hand in hand as if they were on a stroll.

The night was crisp but clear with not a single cloud making the sky foggy; the stars strewn about the blackness twinkled brightly. Caroline breathed in the cool air deeply as she interlaced her fingers with Klaus'.

When they reached his car, a shining black Porsche, Klaus made to open the passenger door for her, but she stopped him.

"I can get in the car on my own, you know. I'm not as weak and fragile as you think." Caroline joked, but Klaus' gaze was serious and intent as he told her in a low, somewhat raspy voice, his eyes a darker shade of blue than usual.

"Caroline, you might be fragile to me, but you are not weak. You are strong, and beautiful, and full of light."

Caroline shook her head, refusing to believe his words. She couldn't be any of these. Caroline was just plain, and Klaus was his usual dashing self. She felt that insecure part of her take over her thoughts and making her wonder, not for the first time, what Klaus saw in her.

Without realising it, Caroline had voiced some of those thoughts at loud.

Klaus took a step towards her and Caroline had to lean against the car in order to look him in the eyes. He put a hand on each side of her head making her heart rate go berserk and blood curse ten times faster into her veins.

His face was inches away from her and she was aware that she was still bent against the car with him hovering above her when he spoke "Listen to me, Caroline. I don't ever want you to underestimate yourself like that. You have a warped impression of how others see you. You are all those things and many more and I..."

Klaus' voice trailed off and then his eyes landed on her parted rozy lips. Next thing she knew, Klaus was kissing her and she was responding, their lips moving together in perfect sync. All of Caroline's worries disappeared as the fire rose and consumed them both. Every nerve in her body felt like wires tingling with electricity when his hand landed on the small of her back, sending shots of shivers down her spine.

Caroline clutched at Klaus' back. She dragged her nails down his leather jacket, at that moment her logic pushed aside, leaving room only for feelings and primal instincts. His tongue came to lick at her lips and ask for permission to enter her mouth and deepen the kiss, which she eagerly granted. Their tongues battled together and their lips kept moving; Caroline had never experienced a kiss like this.

When Klaus drew back, his lips were red and swollen from the kiss, his eyes were alight and it took a while for Caroline to catch her breath. Klaus' thumbs came to brush against her cheeks and Caroline closed her eyes and leaned in to kiss him again, this time slower and more softly.

When their lips parted they were both smiling, Klaus with admiration and Caroline with joy and elation.

"Do you see yourself the way I see you now?"

XXXXX

After Klaus drove Caroline back home and kissed her goodnight at her doorsteps, he headed back to his apartment. He couldn't say he was exactly surprised to see Stefan there.

"Stefan", Klaus greeted him with a rueful smile. The scene of Stefan waiting for him to get home on the couch had a domestic vibe that would have made Klaus run towards him and hug him if he didn't know that Stefan was still there because he knew Klaus had been with Caroline.

"Are you mad at me?" Klaus asked as he shrugged off his jacket and sat on the couch next to Stefan, leaving a few inches distance between them.

Stefan seemed to be as repulsed by the distance between them as Klaus because he placed a hand on his knee and looked into his eyes.

"How can I be angry when you look so happy? How can I hate Caroline when she is the cause of your happiness?" Stefan asked as he got on his knees before the other man and spread Klaus' knees apart.

"Stefan..." Klaus said, trying to stop him because it didn't feel right to let Stefan give him pleasure when all he gave him ever since he met Caroline was heartache.

"No, I want to do this." Stefan said in a stubborn tone Klaus knew all too well to argue with.

Nestled between his thighs, Stefan unbuttoned Klaus' pants and thrust his hand inside, stroking and gently tugging at him until he was erected.

Klaus let his head fall back and he squeezed his eyes shut when Stefan's mouth lowered on his wanting, throbbing erection and wrapped it around its tip. He let out a quivering breath as Stefan started to move, with each downward movement taking more of Klaus into his mouth while he kept stroking him tenderly.

The pleasure he was feeling was almost painful, because as Stefan worshipped him with his mouth, all the guilt he had supressed came back stronger.

"I'm sorry." Klaus whispered as he came in hot jets into Stefan's mouth, grabbing fistfuls of Stefan's hair and holding on to them till the last wave of his orgasm.

Stefan took his time to clean them up and pull back up Klaus' pants before he answered.

"Don't be. I want you to be happy." Stefan said as he wrapped his arms around Klaus' waist and buried his face in his abnomen, his breath hot on Klaus' cooling skin.

He stayed like that for a while, kneeling on the floor and hugging Klaus and Klaus combing his fingers through Stefan's hair.

"But I'm making you unhappy instead." Klaus said in an inaudible whisper.

XXXXX

Caroline was surprised to realise how quickly time was going by like sand falling from between her fingers. After her first date with Klaus, they were seeing each other all the time. Sometimes they were alone and Klaus would pick romantic restaurants or take her for long walks in the city at night and showing her all of his favourite places in Chicago.

She would spend a lot of time at Klaus' apartment above his art studio with Stefan and Rebekah, or more rarely at the Mikaelson mansion. As Caroline fell deeper and deeper in the world of art, Klaus' world, she also fell more in love with Klaus everytime she was with him.

She felt welcomed in this new world that was unfolding before her, a sense of belonging she hadn't felt since she left her small town and friends, maybe even before that.

Caroline grew closer to Stefan as well. Her instincts told her that he was letting her in tentatively, reluctantly, but after a while this reluctance turned into acceptance and familiarity.

Rebekah and her also got to know each other better, and Caroline decided thay she genuinely liked the other girl. When they found out that both Caroline and Rebekah used to be cheerleaders in high school, Kol started calling the two of them the Mikaelson Barbies, like Caroline was already a part of their family. She liked her new nickname too much to feel offended.

When Stefan and Rebekah went home, Caroline would stay in Klaus' apartment till late at night. They would talk about various thing, but even though they were together almost two months now, they hadn't made love yet.

One night when they were laying together at bed, Caroline told Klaus about her ex-boyfriend, Tyler. About how he was the football team's captain and how she lost her virginity to him only for him to break her heart when she caught him cheating on her with another girl a week after that.

"He was your first love. I intend to be your last." Klaus had told her, kissing her until she was dizzy and then kissing her even more.

Caroline finally sent the job applications she had been preparing and even though she hadn't gotten a response yet, she was positive about the outcome.

In those two short months that flew by like water, Caroline was happy. What she didn't know, however, was that this little bubble of happiness she was living in was about to break soon. 


	6. When it rains it pours

# This is art chapter 6 #  
A/N: I get a lot of comments that complain about Klaus being with Stefan all the time. I'm sorry if I haven't made it clear, but there are klefan and klaroline moments, but the story is still progressing, and I intend to make Klefaroline the endgame. As in the three of them together. We're still at the beginning, so don't give up on the story just yet.

Caroline hadn't told Klaus about the job interview for two reasons. First, she wanted it to be a surprise if she got the job, and second, she didn't want him to feel sad or in need to comfort her if she didn't.

It felt like it was something she had to do on her own, and that was what she did. When she entered the most renowned clothes firm in Chiacago, Caroline looked confident and determined, but in reality she didn't expect to be entering the grand building again after the interview, and most definitely she didn't expect to be hired for designing the new winter collection.

Caroline was elated. She left the building hoping down the stairs the whole way and probably ruining her new co-workers' opinion about her, but she didn't care. It was raining outside, the kind of rain that made people stop whatever they were doing and seek shelter in a warm, dry place, but Caroline didn't head home.

Instead she took a cab and gave the driver instructions to take her to Klaus' apartment. Caroline wanted to surprise him. She knew he would be glad for her, and then they would open a bottle of champagne and spend the day with each other. A smile graced her lips at that thought. What better way to spend a rainy and cold day than in the arms of your boyfriend?

XXXXX

Klaus lay on his stomach in the bed, a sweet atony on his limbs. A storm was raging outside, but under the covers and with another body laying next to him it was warm. He was cozy and comfortable and Stefan was with him, and he didn't want this to change.

Klaus hummed against his folded arms and Stefan shifted beside him, asking "What is it?"

"Nothing. I'm just glad you're with me, I guess." Klaus said smiling.

Lately he was spending every minute of the day with Caroline, and even though her company made him feel delighted, he and Stefan hadn't been alone like that for a while.

Stefan's hand came to rest on the small of Klaus' back under his loose shirt, and he shivered when his fingers grazed the bare skin above. Stefan planted a kiss on the soft skin behind Klaus' ear.

"Are you ready for another round, mate?" Klaus asked with a smug smirk, and Stefan tugged gently on the lob of Klaus' ear with his teeth before he answered "Nah, I just like to tease you."

Klaus smiled. He wouldn't leave Stefan unpunished for this. He reverted their positions so that Klaus was on top of Stefan and then attacked his mouth while his hand worked Stefan's zipper down.

Stefan moaned when he palmed him and Klaus smirked into the kiss. That was when he heard the door opening and a familiar voice calling his name, but it was too late to untangle himself from their compromising position.

"Klaus? Are you in here? The door was un-" Caroline's voice trailed off to a barely audible whisper as she took in the scene before her.

"Caroline..." Klaus said, looking at her open mouth and trembling frame.

He felt the guilt and the shame crushing down on him as Caroline spun around and ran out of the door, her steps echoing in the silence she left behind her.

"Fuck." Stefan said, making Klaus snap out of his daze and jump up.

He searched around the room for his shoes and coat, moving in a blur of frantic moves.

"You're going to run after her?" Stefan asked bitterly.

Klaus didn't have enough time to turn back and assure Stefan.

"I'm sorry." he said, and it felt that lately this was the only thing he was saying, and it was useless, really.

He was sorry, but not sorry enough to stop this madness.

Klaus ran out of the apartment and into the heavy rain, looking wildly around him for Caroline even though the rain offered no clear view.

"Caroline" he called when he spotted her and ran towards her.

Klaus tried gripping Caroline by the shoulder, but she slapped his hand away and said in trembling from anger voice "Don't touch me. Don't you dare touch me ever again."

Klaus took a step back, raising his hands up in surrender. It felt like someone had hit him straight in the chest when he saw the hatred and disgust in Caroline's face, but what hurt him the most was the pain she didn't even have the strength to hide.

Myfaultmyfaultmyfault, a voice in his head chanted as he said imploringly "Please, Caroline. Listen to me."

But what was he supposed to say? He had no excuse and he was so tired of lies...

"No!" Caroline spat vehemently. "No. Stay away from me. I don't want to see you ever again."

Klaus suspected that the wetness on Caroline's face wasn't solely due to the rain. That moment Klaus wondered why he kept doing this, why he kept hurting the people he loved, because there was no denying it now, Klaus loved Caroline. He hadn't just fallen for her but really loved her.

Words like worthless, useless and abomination filled his head, the voice of someone he had thought he had jerked free from years ago echoing in the back of his mind. But he hadn't, not really, because the same words kept haunting him, and worst of all, as Klaus watched Caroline walk away and disappear behind a wall of pouring rain, he knew they were true.

Caroline kept walking, her eyes fixed on the slippery pavement and her boots as they stepped into pools of dirty rain water, because she needed something to focus on. If she didn't she felt like she would just might go crazy.

Klaus didn't try to stop her from leaving this time, and a little part of her, that foolishly romantic part that hadn't quite processed what had just happened felt sad, but the other part of her that was lamenting for putting her trust in someone that had yet again hurt her in the worst way silenced it and locked it away.

Caroline felt like crying, screaming, anything to make the leaden weight that had settled in her heart go away. She was drenched to the bone, her wet clothes clinging onto her like a second skin, but she wasn't only shaking from the cold.

The sobs she had been holding back felt suddenly overwhelming and she started crying as if a dam had been broken, her frame trembling fiercely as she made her way towards her house half-blinded by the tears and the rain.

Detached thoughts were running through her head, one of them covering all the others, or rather a saying she hadn't heard in a while but suddenly popped into her head when she tried not to think of the scene she had just witnessed.

When it rains, it pours.

XXXXX

That night Klaus dreamed that he was in a dark corridor with several doors on each side. His footsteps were echoing through the walls and he wasn't sure how he got there; he was just walking without seeming to he able to stop, and when he tried opening one of the doors, he found out it was locked.

He knew the dream changed when he started to run, a sense of urgency overtaking him. The corridor seemed endless and the more he ran, the more the feeling of apprehension grew.

He came to an abrupt halt, clutching at his sides and trying to catch his breath from the long run when the corridor came to an end. That was only when he noticed the two doors, one to his left and one to his right, this time stood open.

"Nik." Klaus' head snapped towards the sound coming from one of the two doors.

He would recognise everywhere that voice.

"Stefan?" Klaus asked, and then he saw him.

Stefan was clutching at his stomach where to his horror Klaus saw the tip of a knife protruding.

"Help me." he choked out, and Klaus took a step towards him when he heard another voice, this time coming from the door to his left.

Caroline's face was strained and tear-streaked, her lips parted in a silent scream of pain. It broke his heart to see her like this, but when Klaus started to approach her, he heard Stefan's panting voice "Please, Nik. Don't leave me."

Klaus somehow knew, like people in dreams are suddenly aware of some certain truths without having to be told so, that he couldn't save both. The moment he would reach one of the doors, the other would close and leave his loved one inside, alone and in pain forever.

But how could he choose? Klaus loved them both, in his dream his subconscious could freely admit it, and if chosing one made him lose the other, he knew that in the end he would lose both, because he just couldn't do it.

Klaus couldn't chose. 


	7. IMPORTANT NOTE

**IMPORTANT (or maybe not so important) NOTE:**

I've been getting many negative comments lately and it's getting kind of annoying.

Someone said I should put the story under just one pairing. If you read the description of this story carefully, you'll see that it says KLEFAROLINE AU/AH at the beginning, and then it says it ALSO CONTAINS klefan, klaroline and steroline ships.

Two: an anonymous told me I'm weird. Was that supposed to be an insult? Because I find it a compliment.

I like this story because yes, I'm weird and I have many things planned for it, but if no one seems to like it, it is only fair that I delete it from and save your precious time from being wasted on thinking mean comments. Note that I say I have many things planned and not had. You know why that is? I will continue writing this story, it will just not be available on the site anymore.

Thank you for taking the time to read my note and I know some of you have might like this story, but it will be deleted next week.

Have a nice day!


	8. Something is lost, something is found

A/N: Hey guys. I know it's been a while and I was really contemplating whether I should just put that story down, but then I saw all those wonderful comments telling me not to. I was really surprised to see how many of you like this story, so I will keep posting chapters in the site.

A huge thanks to all of you who commented on the last chapter. This is what made me get over my frustration over the negative comments I was getting and realise that I didn't want to disappoint anyone. So, here you go. A new chapter.

XXXXX

Klaus woke up to the feel of a cold bed, his fingers reaching to the other side of the bed, only to find it empty. The events of the previous day came rushing back to him, and he felt a pang of guilt and pain in his chest.

He almost couldn't find the strength in him to stand up, especially with last night's dream still fresh in his mind, but he somehow did. He dressed up abstractedly and walked towards the kitchen, dragging his feet.

However, there was a surprise waiting for him, specifically a brownblond-haired young man sitting on the kitchen counter and calmly sipping his coffee.

"Stefan?" Klaus asked, incredulity seeping in his voice. "I thought you would have left."

Stefan looked up at him and then silently offered him a mug of coffee. Klaus slowly came and sat across of him and took a gulp of the lukewarm coffee that left a bitter taste to his mouth.

"You had a restless sleep. I couldn't leave you." Stefan said, and Klaus lowered his head in shame, because no matter how hard he tried, he couldn't tell him about the dream, because even after everything that had happened Stefan was still looking out for him.

"No, it's alright." Stefan said quickly "I've had time to think last night and I don't want to hurt you anymore, Klaus. I know you love Caroline, and I don't mind."

"But she will never want to see me again." Klaus said before he could control himself, and Stefan smiled a little ruefully.

"She will come back, eventually. She just needs some time."

Klaus didn't answer. He didn't dare to hope. But he had to explain the whole story to Caroline before any of them would take a decision of any sort, and that was what he was going to do.

XXXXX

Caroline sat curled up on herself under her bed's covers. She had her arms wrapped tightly around her drawn up legs in a fetal position and stared blankly off in the distance, gazing at nothing in particular in an attempt to hold back the sobs that threatened to tear her body from the inside.

But she couldn't cry. No, Caroline had reached that point where she was beyond tears. Her brain was still trying to process what had happened.

That was when her cellphone rung, making Caroline jump and after a few moments of confusion reaching to her nightstand.

"Hello?" Caroline said, her voice hoarse after having not used it in a while.

"Care, hey. I'm just calling to see how you are doing. Even though we live in the same place it seems like we haven't seen each other in ages." Elena said from the other line and she laughed. Caroline didn't even try to humour her friend and laugh as well.

Then it occured to her that Elena was waiting for a reply. But Caroline wasn't doing well. Far from it. She had found just yesterday her boyfriend with another man, particularly a guy whom Caroline considered her friend two days ago.

Damn it, she had found her boyfriend with another guy. The idea was so absurd that Caroline had the sudden urge to laugh, undoubtedly sounding on the edge of hysteria and scaring Elena.

"I think I have caught a cold." Caroline chose to lie- well, it wasn't exactly a lie because she had indeed caught a cold from standing in the rain; it was just that this was the least important of her problems.

"I thought you didn't sound very well." Elena said, concern evident in her voice. "Do you want me to come over and help you with anything?"

"No." Caroline croaked a little too fast and then tried to correct it and change subject before Elena could suspect anything "I mean, you don't have to. I'm fine, really. I'll just stay in bed all day. How are you doing? What about Katherine?"

Elena had told her that she and Katherine had had a 'chat', even though Caroline highly doubted it had been a civilized one- after all she knew her friend and what she could be like when she was really angry, almost matching Katherine's personality. The point was that the sisters had put things down and Katherine had promised to quit her job as a prostitute, which she wouldn't have started if she hadn't gotten addicted to drugs in the first place, as Elena told her.

"Katherine has promised to go to rehab. She's still struggling, we both are, but I think things are looking up." Elena said in a quiet voice, and after a few moments of silence where only their breaths could be heard through the phone, but then she perked up and asked the one thing Caroline was afraid of "How about you and Klaus?"

"Look, Elena. I gotta go, sorry." Caroline said quickly and then ended the call without hearing Elena's response.

For a few moments she remained still, holding her cellphone into her hand as if she had forgotten its existence. Then, Caroline threw her blankets off her and crawled out of bed in a flash of determination.

She made it to the bathroom and leaning against the marble sink, she looked at herself in the mirror. After not having left her bed since the day before, Caroline looked worse than she had expected. She had black shades around her eyes and her skin was paler than usual while her hair hung in dull, full of knots locks.

Okay, Caroline. You have to get over it, she thought to herself as she splashed cold water to her face. She brushed her teeth, combed her hair and got out of her pajamas and wore normal clothes. That was fine with her because at least she had something to do and distract herself, but when she was sat at the living room's couch with a steaming mug of hot chocolate in her hands, she found that she was just delaying the inevitable.

Caroline's thoughts turned once again towards Klaus, this time accompanied by flashes of anger along with the emptyness she felt inside her. He had told her she was beautiful and that she didn't see herself the way he saw her. He had told her he fancied her. Was it all a lie? What was Caroline to Klaus, just a little toy to spend his time with?

The doubt was killing her. Only now did Caroline understand how her mother felt when her father left her for another man. Suddenly Liz Forbes didn't seem like a cold, indifferent mother who cared more for her job than for her daughter, but a hurt, betrayed woman who was trying to keep her life and herself from falling to pieces in the only way she knew.

Caroline felt guilt crushing over her and she promised herself she would never be so quick to judge her mother again.

She placed the untouched mug of chocolate that had now grown cold on the coffee table and ran her fingers through her hair, getting rid of the last knots remaining. This was all so messed up. She had never asked for anything like this to happen in her life, for things to get so complicated, for her heart to be broken like that once again.

And there was no denying it now: she loved Klaus and that was why what she saw hurt so much.

Her wistful thoughts were interrupted by the ringing of the bell. Caroline made no attempt to stand up and answer the door. She had been hiding in her apartment and wallowing in her misery for the better part of the weekend and she wasn't going to change it anytime soon.

There was another ringing, accompanied by a bang on the door and a voice that made Caroline jump off the couch with a mixture of excitement, anger and apprehension, all battling for dominance inside her.

Silly girl, Caroline mentally scolded herself as she lingered behind the door, moving on her tiptoes so that she wouldn't be heard from outside, while she wished that Klaus would leave and keep knocking on her door at the same time.

"Caroline, I know you're inside. Please, I know you must be angry with me- scratch that. I know you hate me, but please let me explain." Klaus said, his voice sending a shiver down Caroline's spine that was both delighted and scared at hearing his voice.

For a few moments she held her breath and contemplated whether she should tell him to go to Hell and never come back, but she needed some answers- this was the least he owed to her, and who better to give her answers than Klaus himself? However, in the end the feeling that prevailed inside her was seething fury, and that was why she opened the door, so abruptly that she made the old hinges groan loudly in protest.

"What the hell do you want, Klaus? I think you have done enough already." Caroline said, her voice low and surprisingly calm, but he didn't miss the hurt undertow hidden beneath all the anger.

"Let me explain. This is all I'm asking of you." Klaus said, holding his hands up in a gesture of surrender.

Caroline narrowed her eyes at him, but in the end she sighed and said, taking a step back. "Come in."


	9. No one can fill your shadow

CHAPTER 8

A/N: I'm really disatisfied with this chapter. I can't point my finger at it. Maybe it's because of the crappy dialogue. I wanted to wait till I had finished another chapter before I published it to make up for its crappiness, but then again life has gone hectic and I can't seem to find time to update any of my stories as often as I would like.

So, because I don't want you to think I have abandoned this story, here is a new chapter.

Enjoy!

XXXXX

"Caroline, I know you're inside. Please, I know you must be angry with me- scratch that. I know you hate me, but please let me explain." Klaus said, his voice sending a shiver down Caroline's spine that was both delighted and scared at hearing his voice.

For a few moments she held her breath and contemplated whether she should tell him to go to Hell and never come back, but she needed some answers- this was the least he owed to her, and who better to give her answers than Klaus himself? However, in the end the feeling that prevailed inside her was seething fury, and that was why she opened the door, so abruptly that she made the old hinges groan loudly in protest.

"What the hell do you want, Klaus? I think you have done enough already." Caroline said, her voice low and surprisingly calm, but he didn't miss the hurt undertow hidden beneath all the anger.

"Let me explain. This is all I'm asking of you." Klaus said, holding his hands up in a gesture of surrender.

Caroline narrowed her eyes at him, but in the end she sighed and said, resigned, taking a step back. "Come in."

They sat at her living room, Caroline sitting on the couch with her back straight and her chin held high in a sign of defiance, and Klaus sitting stiffly on a chair across from her.

"I'm listening." Caroline said coldly and Klaus tried to gather his thoughts and put all the things he wanted to say into words. It was always easier for him to convey his feelings through his art, but at that moment, as Klaus was faced with the task of explaining to Caroline things he himself could not comprehend, he felt like there was cotton in his mouth preventing him from speaking.

Klaus took a deep breath. "I met Stefan when I first started middle school. It wasn't a good time for me back then; my family was falling apart and I would always pick fights at school and be the lone artist that would sit alone all the time because people were too scared to approach me."

Caroline quirked an eyebrow and Klaus took it as a cue to continue. "Stefan was different. He had a different approach of life just like me, and that made him see through my angry façade. Even though I found his attitude annoying at first, we soon became friends and did all the things friends were supposed to do: share secrets, help the other when he was drunk or in a difficult situation, talk and laugh together. But as high school neared its end, I realised this wasn't enough for me anymore."

Klaus closed his eyes and pressed his fingers to his temples where a dull pain was indicating the upcoming headache.

How could he explain his and Stefan' relationship to Caroline? How could he explain all the confusion and heartache, love and friendship, sadness and hapiness, comradeship and finally the sense of belonging Klaus had never really experienced until the green-eyed boy came into his life?

It was difficult, but he tried his best to let Caroline know that what she saw was not her fault; that what she and Klaus had was not just a fling or a fake.

"Stefan sure wasn't expecting it when I told him how I felt." Klaus said, laughing humourlessly at the memory "He said he didn't feel the same and we agreed to stay friends because we went way back to let this confession ruin our friendship, but things weren't the same."

He took a deep breath as he braced himself for the next part of the story "Then came the accident. The car crushed and I almost died. My little brother Henrik wasn't so lucky."

He paused and looked at Caroline and saw that her cold exterior had melted at his words. "What happened?" she asked, her voice low and, despite her reservations, full of empathy.

"I was in a coma, and I kept imagining hearing various people talking to me and pleading with me to come back to them. One of them was Stefan. I remember thinking that it was just a dream, but when I woke up, there he was, clutching my hand to his chest and telling me how much he loved me and that while I was unconscious he realised that he couldn't live without me. I spent a long time in the hospital, but when I went back, things had changed. The realisation of Henrik's death settled in, but Stefan let me mourn and then helped me get over it."

Caroline's face wasn't as hard as before, her determination and anger wavering. "I'm sorry, Klaus. I didn't know." she said, and Klaus wanted to laugh at the absurdity of the situation where she was apologising to him, but there was nothing funny about it.

"No, Caroline. Let me finish." She nodded and he continued.

"We remained together for a long time. We kept it a secret and we both had various occasional relationships with girls, but in the end we always went back to each other. Stefan has been one of the few constant things in my life and I can't give up on him." Klaus said, and he hated to see the hurt expression on Caroline's face, because he knew what she was thinking.

She was thinking that with the history Klaus and Stefan shared, there was no place for her and that she couldn't separate them. "What about your sister? What about..."

She bit her lips and cut her sentence short, but it wasn't difficult to hear the unspoken word lingering in the tense air between them. _What about me?_

"Rebekah isn't really in love with Stefan. She thinks she is, but I know her too well. I hate to lie to her and deceive her, and so does Stefan. It's eating him, but I don't want to see my sister heartbroken so she can't learn the truth. And you...you have to believe me when I tell you this, Caroline. I'm in love with you." Caroline's eyes flashed with rage again, but Klaus held a finger in the air and added "No, listen to me, there's more. I'm in love with you, I care about you and I love you and I want to be with you."

Tears were brimming from Caroline's eyes and blurring her vision, but she was too proud to let them fall. In that she and Klaus were the same. Too proud and stubborn for their own good.

"How can you say you love me?" Caroline asked, her voice trembling, but not from anger anymore. She wished Klaus thought it was from anger and not because she was weak, because at that moment she felt bare and raw, not even able to identify the onslaught of feelings inside her.

She couldn't handle it at the moment, not with Klaus sitting there and watching her fall apart.

"I think you should leave now." she said, and Klaus nodded solemnly.

"I hope you'll consider what I told you." he said as farewell, and then he seemed like he wanted to add something else, or maybe approach her, but he decided against it.

Caroline didn't stand up- didn't think she could. Instead she let Klaus show himself out of the house, waiting for the sound of the door closing behind him. When she heard it, as if on cue, Caroline burst into tears.

XXXXX

Klaus left Caroline's apartment feeling weirdly freed at telling Caroline the truth, and at the same time sad at seeing her in such a broken state. However there was nothing more he could do or say to make her come around. All the cards had been revealed, and now the decision of what would happen next depended solely on Caroline.

Stefan was at his own house, but Klaus didn't care. He was feeling like today it was the day of only truths, and the truth was what he would give to Stefan.

Klaus could hear the sound of piano as he climbed up the stairs to the last floor, which only intensified when he reached Stefan's apartment. The door was unlocked like always, and Klaus wanted to scold him for it yet again, but he was distracted by the notes and harmonies mingling together in a complex melody that moulded and took shape under Stefan's skillful fingers.

Stefan was sitting on his piano bench, his adept, long fingers moving on the keys, a serene look on his face as he played. His back was turned to Klaus and he had yet to notice his presence. Klaus wanted to freeze time and watch Stefan playing the piano forever. Once he had spent hours sketching the way Stefan's hands bent and moved to press the keys, the peacefulness of his face.

He walked towards him and placed a hand on his shoulder. Stefan didn't stop playing, and Klaus closed his eyes and let himself get lost in the sound and the feel. After a while Stefan ended the song, a few last notes lingering in the air.

"No...don't stop." Klaus said softly, squeezing his shoulder once, and Stefan complied.

He played another song and then another. When he thought that Klaus was satisfied, he turned around and drew Klaus by the hand to sit at the piano bench next to him.

'What happened?' he asked simply, and Klaus told him. He waited for a change in Stefan's face; maybe anger; maybe bitterness, but he just found the same serene expression.

"Remember what I told you? I don't mind. I just want you to be happy"

Klaus pressed his forehead against Stefan's shoulder. 'And I want is for us to be happy. I love you. I know I should tell you more often, but I want you to know that whatever Caroline says, nothing will change between us."

'I know." Stefan spoke quietly, as if not to disturb their momentary calmness.

And then there was nothing left for Klaus to do but wait for Caroline's decision and do something he hadn't done in a long time: pray that he would not lose her.


End file.
